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No Miracles
 Hasan Ali, 31, accountant: “The Pope is clearly biased towards the Israelis, so he is unable to solve or help heal the Arab-Israeli conflict. In any case, Israel rejects the whole concept of peace and with Benjamin Netanyahu [Israeli Prime Minister] and Avigdor Lieberman [Israeli Foreign Minister] in power it’s likely to stay that way. The atrocities Israel committed in Gaza are the most obvious example of what I’m saying. So I don’t think this Pope can really contribute to peace in our region. He’s not as popular as his predecessor and he’s not neutral like a good mediator should be.”
Kawthar Kabboul, 29, teacher: “The Pope’s visit could never have had any effect on the peace process in the region. This is because the peace process needs someone serious who can encourage all of the players to come to the negotiating table, not someone who sends negative messages to the Arab world.”
 Sari Bakkour, 25, painter: “The Pope’s visit to the region didn’t do anything to bring a peaceful solution to our problems here. He didn’t visit Syria, even though it’s an important player in the region. If his visit was for religious reasons, it makes his decision to bypass Syria even worse. Syria is the cradle of civilisation and it has many holy Christian shrines which are a must-see for anyone doing a Christian pilgrimage in the region. The former Pope visited Syria where he was welcomed by everyone; this one chose not to. It leaves me wondering just how he thinks peace can be achieved without Syria.”
Basem Yousof, 27, engineer: “Whether the visit was religious or not, it was certainly related to politics – the Pope represents more than one billion Christians. Even if he wanted to, I don’t think the Pope could help bring peace to the region because the circumstances are so complicated.” |
